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NCAA MSOC First Round UCCS vs FLC

PREVIEW | Men’s Soccer Set to Battle Fort Lewis in First Round of NCAA Tournament

11/15/2023 3:00:00 PM

By: Tyler Tvelia, Assistant Sports Information Director
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
  • After being selected as the No. 9 seed in Super Region 4 for the 2023 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team is set to make their first NCAA postseason appearance in program history on Friday, Nov. 17, as they prepare to take on No. 8 seeded Fort Lewis College in the first round of the tournament.
  • Friday's matchup will take place in Wichita Falls, Texas, at Stang Park on the campus of the tournament's No. 1 seed, Midwestern State University, with kickoff set for 2 p.m. (MT).
  • The winner of the first-round clash between the Mountain Lions and Skyhawks will advance in the tournament to play the top-seeded Mustangs on Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m. (MT).
GAME COVERAGE TICKETS
  • All fans attending Stang Park will be charged admission and are encouraged to purchase tickets online through the HomeTown Ticketing link on the men's soccer schedule page.
  • Ticket Prices:
    • Adults - $8.00
    • Senior Citizen - $5.00
    • Students - $5.00
    • Military - $5.00
2023 MEN'S SOCCER SEASON IN REVIEW
  • The Mountain Lions put together a strong start to the 2023 season that saw them record a five-game unbeaten streak to open the campaign that included a trio of wins and a draw against then No. 3 nationally ranked St. Mary's University. UCCS closed their eight-game non-conference slate with a difficult stretch as they lost a pair of one-goal matches to then No. 13 Rogers State University and then No. 3 Colorado State University Pueblo while earning a 2-1 win on the road against Westminster University.
  • UCCS drew a challenging schedule to open the RMAC portion of their schedule, as they began conference play with a scoreless draw against last year's champion, Colorado School of Mines, before dropping a pair of tight matches against Metropolitan State University Denver and then No. 8 CSU Pueblo.
  • Sitting at 0-2-1 in the conference after three games, UCCS flipped the switch and proceeded to go unbeaten over the final seven games of their conference slate to finish the campaign tied for fourth place with a 5-2-3 record and 18 points.
  • Having secured the No. 4 seed in the RMAC Tournament, UCCS drew a home matchup with Westminster in the quarterfinal round and went on to overcome a one-goal deficit at halftime to defeat the Griffins by a score of 2-1 and advance to the conference semifinal game. In their RMAC Semifinal matchup against then No. 12 nationally ranked and top seeded Fort Lewis, UCCS put together a strong first half effort but ultimately fell by a score of 4-0 after they were forced to play with just ten men for most of the second half due to a red card being pulled.
  • Although their RMAC Tournament hopes came to an end in the semifinal round, the Mountain Lions were selected as the No. 9 seed in Super Region 4 for the 2023 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship, becoming the first men's soccer team in UCCS history to earn an NCAA postseason berth.
RMAC LEADERS
  • As a team, the Mountain Lions rank among the league leaders in most offensive and defensive statistical categories. Defensively, UCCS has posted the fifth-best goals against average in the conference at 1.20 while also limiting opponents to just 11.5 shots and 5.2 shots on goal per game. On the offensive end, the Mountain Lions lead the league with 308 total shots while also ranking second in assists (33) and shots on goal (126), third in total points (99), and tied for fourth in goals (33).
  • Individually, senior Alex Andersson ranks among the top-ten in the RMAC for most offensive categories as he currently ranks tied for second in shots per game (3.26/gm) and sits tied for fourth in goals with eight, tied for fifth in shots on goal with 21, and sixth in points with 18.
  • Graduate student Kolby Raineri also ranks as one of the top players in the conference as he sits among the top five in the league for total shots (55), shots on goal (26), and assists (7) while ranking seventh in the RMAC with 17 points.  
  • Graduate student Marvin Putu has also continued to have a strong nose for finding goal-scorers as he has posted seven assists, which ranks tied for the third-most in the conference.
  • Between the sticks, first-year Mountain Lion Soren Russell has established himself as one of the top-tier goalkeepers in the conference as he has posted the fourth-lowest GAA in the league at 1.106 across over 1,600 minutes played. Russell has notched the second-best save percentage in the RMAC at .783 while also grabbing the second-most saves with 72. In addition, he has completed five clean sheet performances this season, which ranks tied for the third-most in the league.
RMAC AWARDS ALL-TIME SERIES
  • The Mountain Lions hold a 15-43-5 all-time record against the Skyhawks, however they have had more success in recent years with an 8-4-1 record dating back to the start of the 2014 season.
  • Friday's NCAA Tournament matchup will mark the third meeting between the two squads this season, with the Mountain Lions earning a 3-2 victory during the regular season and the Skyhawks claiming a 4-0 win in the RMAC Semifinal match.
SCOUTING FORT LEWIS
  • After a disappointing 2022 season that saw Fort Lewis miss the RMAC Tournament, the Skyhawks returned with a vengeance for the 2023 season as they went on to post an 11-4-4 overall record and were crowned the RMAC Men's Soccer Regular Season Champions with a 6-1-3 conference record. After earning the No. 1 seed in the RMAC Tournament, the Skyhawks made a run to conference championship game, where they were defeated by No. 3 seed CSU Pueblo by a score of 2-0
  • The Skyhawks were well represented in the conference's All-RMAC and major individual awards announcement on Thursday, Nov. 2, as David Oberholtzer was named the RMAC Coach of the Year while Anton Hjalmarsson was tabbed as the RMAC Player of the Year and RMAC Freshman of the Year. Hjallmarsson, Gabriel Legendre, and Loic Jean-Baptiste were each named to the All-RMAC First Team, while Tomas Duenes and Kaden Schufft earned All-RMAC Second Team honors.
  • Offensively, the Skyhawks lead the conference in scoring with 47 total goals for an average of 2.47 per game. Fort Lewis also currently leads the league with 7.21 shots on goal per game and 7.11 points per game while sitting second in the conference with an average of 15.37 shots per game.
  • The FLC offense is led by a trio of outstanding forwards in Hjalmarsson, Legendre, and Duenes, who combined to record 27 goals and 17 assists for a total of 71 points. Hjalmarsson led the trio with 28 points off ten goals and eight assists, while Duenes posted 22 points and Legendre recorded 21. Hjalmarsson and Legendre currently rank second in the RMAC with ten goals apiece, while Duenes sits in a tie for seventh with seven goals.
  • On the defensive side, Fort Lewis has posted a 1.26 GAA on the season while allowing opponents to take 11.9 shots and 4.58 shots on goal per game. Kaden Schufft and Jakob Larson were both mainstays on the Skyhawk defense as they have each logged over 1,500 minutes of action to this point in the campaign.  
  • In frame, Lucas Martin has started 18 games for the Skyhawks and tallied over 1,600 minutes of action, recording a 1.17 GAA and three clean sheet efforts. On 214 shots faced, Martin has collected 60 saves and posted a .741 save percentage.
HISTORY IN THE MAKING
  • Fifth-year player Kolby Raineri has continued to establish himself as one of the most decorated players in program history as he is now the all-time leader in program history for shots (213) and shots on goal (105) while also ranking top-five in the record book for points (76), goals (27), assists (22), games played (79), and minutes played (5,940). On Friday, Raineri will move into a tie for the all-time lead in games played in program history as he also needs just two assists to move into a tie for the all-time lead in that category.
  • Senior Alex Andersson has also made his mark on the UCCS men's soccer record book as he currently ranks tied for sixth all-time with 24 goals, eighth with 57 points, tied for eighth with 53 shots on goal, and ninth with 124 total shots.
  • Graduate student forward Marvin Putu has established himself as on of the most effective assist men in program history across just two seasons with the Mountain Lions as he sits tied for 6th all-time in the record book with 13 assists.
  • Goalkeeper Soren Russell has also made his way into the record book in just his first season at UCCS as he already ranks tied for tenth in program history with five shutouts and sits tied for second all-time in program history with his 1.10 career GAA (min. 1,000 minutes).
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LEWIS WILCOX
  • Head coach Lewis Wilcox is currently in his third season at the helm of the UCCS men's soccer program and has posted an exceptional 29-18-10 overall record. Under Wilcox, the Mountain Lions have qualified for the RMAC Tournament in back-to-back seasons and will be making their first appearance at the NCAA Tournament in program history.  
  • During his first two seasons at the helm, Wilcox led the Mountain Lions to a 19-13-5 overall record and coached the team to their first appearance in the RMAC Tournament since the 2018 season. Under his guidance, the UCCS men's soccer program has earned 13 All-RMAC selections, including five on the first team, five on the second team, and three honorable mention selections. In addition, Wilcox's resume features a pair of RMAC major awards, including the 2021 RMAC Player of the Year in Alex Andersson and the 2022 Co-Freshman of the Year in Matteo Moreno Madrid.
  • The Mountain Lions have also been well-represented at the regional and national levels during his time at the head of the program, securing six D2CCA All-Region honors, two United Soccer Coaches All-Region accolades, and one D2CCA All-American (Alex Andersson – 2021 First Team).
  • UCCS men's soccer has also flourished academically with the leadership of Wilcox, securing RMAC All-Academic First Team honors, four College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District accolades, and one CSC Academic All-America award (Kolby Raineri – 2022 Third Team).
WEATHER
  • The forecast for Wichita Falls, Texas, on Friday afternoon calls for ideal soccer weather with partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-60s.
UP NEXT
  • The winner of Friday's matchup will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to take on top-seeded and No. 2 nationally ranked Midwestern State on Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m. (MT) from Stang Park.
 
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